Electronic marketplaces, such as those accessible via the Internet, may include a catalog of items or products available for purchase. These items may be offered as the basis for commerce (e.g., sale or trade). In one example, customers may utilize a web browser to visit a merchant's website, select an item for purchase from the catalog, and engage in a checkout process to finalize an order for the item. The merchant may operate a fulfillment network including various facilities in order to process such orders. For instance, the merchant may operate a facility that prepares shipments of purchased items. A shipment carrier may receive such shipments from the merchant and deliver the shipments to the respective purchasing customers.
The facilities operated by the merchant may include various fulfillment processes for fulfilling orders submitted by customers. These processes may operate on items to perform various tasks, such as sorting items, transferring items from one location to another, and preparing items for shipment. As specific examples, items together with a shipping bill may be wrapped (e.g., shrink-wrapped) and placed in a shipping envelope or a box, or may be placed directly in a shipping envelope or a box. At one or more points in these processes, items are carried on a conveyor belt, to be transferred onto another conveyor belt, onto a workstation, or into a sorting bin or a shipment box.
While the system and method for automatically packaging item(s), and associated packages, are described herein by way of example for several embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the system and method for automatically packaging item(s), and associated packages, are not limited to the embodiments or drawings described. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the system and method for automatically packaging item(s), and associated packages, to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the scope of the system and method for automatically packaging item(s), and associated packages. The headings used herein are for organizational purposes only and are not meant to be used to limit the scope of the description of the present application. As used throughout this application, the word “may” is used in a permissive sense (i.e., meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense (i.e., meaning must). Similarly, the words “include,” “including,” and “includes” mean including, but not limited to.